A New View on Immigrants' Bilingualism and the Business of Learning English

Debunking myths on immigrant education

Source: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/political-bookworm/2010/04/debunking_myths_on_immigrant_e.html

Today, more than 5 million immigrant children are not proficient in English, yet Washington’s No Child Left Behind Act promotes English-only instruction due to some misconceptions bilingualism. I was once that immigrant child that could not speak English, so this article appealed to me.

Rosemary Salomone, a law professor at St. John’s University, recently published her book “True American: Language, Identity, and the Education of Immigrant Children,” in which she debunks the myths that bilingual school programs impair a child’s academic success and that bilingualism is threatening the future of English in America.

Recent studies have provided evidence that bilingualism enhances “mental flexibility, creative thinking, and the capacity to read social cues.” In my Longevity class last term (psych/humbio) and in this article, another claim has surfaced – bilingualism may decrease the rate of cognitive decline in aging individuals. Professor Laura L. Carstensen said that continual intellectual engagement is critical to warding off cognitive decline.

Another benefit of bilingualism is that “children raised bilingually are better able to screen out irrelevant information.” Speakers of several languages are more adept at “reading” others’ mental states and behavior. This skill will be especially useful in the increasingly transnational and globalized world. According to the findings, dual language immersion program (when half of the instruction is in English, the other half in the native language) are the most effective means for developing proficiency in two languages.

I am glad that sociologists and psychologists are noting the emotional and academic gains that immigrant children have when they are able to communicate in both their native language and English. Not only are they able to communicate in their native language with their family and thus retain their heritage and relationships with family members, but these children understand the global community in which we live.

Although I see the concerns with bilingualism (immigrants might not learn English; resistance to assimilation), I do think that bilingualism should be encouraged in the United States.

Introducing the Accelerated English Language Program

Source: http://www.prlog.org/10613094-introducing-the-accelerated-english-language-program.html

This article was about a new six-week accelerated English language learning program at the New Hampton School. The program will provide the “quintessential American experience” to motivated international high school students through academics and extracurricular activities.

This program reminded me of Yihwan’s comment about Koreans’ obsession with learning English and receiving an American education. My boarding school had many Korean students and I learned that Korean families prioritize the advantages of getting an American education and knowing how to speak English.

I watched the program’s promotional video. The program’s highlights include being able to visit Harvard, Dartmouth, and New England boarding schools. This article exposed me to the business of language acquisition and emphasized the global power of an English education. With the rise of China as a global economic power, will international students choose to spend their summers in China as opposed to the US? I have seen the beginnings of this trend and wonder if it will continue.